Charity food festival: Students, families get a taste of the world
Proceeds from sales to go to Balochistan’s earthquake victims.
The food festival featured cuisines from the Far East to Latin America. PHOTOS: EXPRESS
ISLAMABAD:
Hundreds of students from various schools of the twin cities came to taste different international cuisines at a food festival organised by Westminster on Saturday evening.
A delicious aroma had settled over the private school’s campus and it was as if several restaurants had opened under the same roof. Those serving out the dishes were dressed in traditional attire of countries they were representing.
The festival featured cuisines from all over the world. If the smoke and scent of food was not enough, each country tried its best to attract visitors with the most scrumptious dishes. Backgrounds of each stall were lit up with posters and informative banners about the countries to educate visitors. From elbowing one another to screaming out for friends at stalls, youngsters were trying their best to grab the meal of their choice. “I am lucky my friend is at the Italian stall, so I got my lasagna,” said Ahmed Gilani, a student.
Sana Badar, a receptionist at the school, told The Express Tribune that preparations for the event had been ongoing for the past two weeks.
The money gathered through the festival will be donated to flood victims of Balochistan. Standing at Japan’s stall, she said the Japanese embassy had helped them by providing a Japanese chef for the night. With sushi, tempura prawns and sashimi on the menu, Badar said this was a good opportunity for students to try cuisines which were very expensive otherwise.
“We are selling our sushi cheaper than any place in the world” she said laughingly. Maryam Zafar at Switzerland’s stall said, “It was challenging to decide what to sell as not all delicacies are well received. So we had to make sure the items are tasty”.
Musa Malik, who had come to support friends at the Switzerland stall, said, “I am playing it safe by not experimenting so I had my fish and chips from the England stall and some other goodies from the Italian stall”.
Fasi Zaka, a radio talk-show host, was the judge for the best food stall at the event. Speaking to The Express Tribune, after tasting tidbits from twelve different stalls, Zaka said it was a great evening for students and families and such events should happen more often. “They are informative and fun at the same time”.
Published in The Express Tribune, November 4th,2013.
Hundreds of students from various schools of the twin cities came to taste different international cuisines at a food festival organised by Westminster on Saturday evening.
A delicious aroma had settled over the private school’s campus and it was as if several restaurants had opened under the same roof. Those serving out the dishes were dressed in traditional attire of countries they were representing.
The festival featured cuisines from all over the world. If the smoke and scent of food was not enough, each country tried its best to attract visitors with the most scrumptious dishes. Backgrounds of each stall were lit up with posters and informative banners about the countries to educate visitors. From elbowing one another to screaming out for friends at stalls, youngsters were trying their best to grab the meal of their choice. “I am lucky my friend is at the Italian stall, so I got my lasagna,” said Ahmed Gilani, a student.
Sana Badar, a receptionist at the school, told The Express Tribune that preparations for the event had been ongoing for the past two weeks.
The money gathered through the festival will be donated to flood victims of Balochistan. Standing at Japan’s stall, she said the Japanese embassy had helped them by providing a Japanese chef for the night. With sushi, tempura prawns and sashimi on the menu, Badar said this was a good opportunity for students to try cuisines which were very expensive otherwise.
“We are selling our sushi cheaper than any place in the world” she said laughingly. Maryam Zafar at Switzerland’s stall said, “It was challenging to decide what to sell as not all delicacies are well received. So we had to make sure the items are tasty”.
Musa Malik, who had come to support friends at the Switzerland stall, said, “I am playing it safe by not experimenting so I had my fish and chips from the England stall and some other goodies from the Italian stall”.
Fasi Zaka, a radio talk-show host, was the judge for the best food stall at the event. Speaking to The Express Tribune, after tasting tidbits from twelve different stalls, Zaka said it was a great evening for students and families and such events should happen more often. “They are informative and fun at the same time”.
Published in The Express Tribune, November 4th,2013.